Lee and Work Crew Building a Water Tank

Water catchment and storage was a big part of what we did to make a real difference in the life of a Tuvaluan. As Peace Corps Volunteers we had a wonderful collaboration with Save the Children Foundation to build 1,000 gallon water tanks in the village at each household. The women of the village provided the sand and gravel and the young men provided the labor. They worked day after day building water tanks so by the time our service was complete nearly everyone had a water tank. This made a huge difference in the life a young woman whose role it was to carry water from the central cistren in the middle of the village. The water was rationed and they had to stand in long hot lines to get their ration and the water was always contaminated. By having a new water tank with a 1,000 gallons of fresh, clean water just outside of their home with a tap made a huge difference in sanitation and clean drinking water. When my wife, Vicki, and our daughter, Riana, returned nealy 19 years later the water tanks were still in use. Some had been repaired, some had even been moved and the in many cases the islanders had gone on to build a second tank or even 2,000 gallon tanks! This proved to be a very appropriate technology as there is plenty of clean rain water to catch! It was so great to be able to work with Save The Children to make this all possible!